Richard Relf
Real Name: Richard Relf Aliases: Edward Galen Vachta Wanted For: Fraud, Theft, Embezzlement, Abduction Missing Since: September 1992 Case Details: On September 9, 1992, Joanne Relf of Phoenix, Arizona, came home from work and planned to spend the night with her eleven-year-old stepdaughter, Heather. Her husband Richard had left that morning on business. When she got home, Joanne found a note from him stating that Heather had been picked up by her grandparents after school. The note also stated that they would return her by 9PM. However, Joanne soon found that Heather was not at her grandparents. In fact, she had not been in school at all that day. Concerned, she searched and found that several clothes and luggage were missing along with some credit cards. She still doesn't know where Richard and Heather went. Since then, she has changed her name and moved to a new city. Heather's mother, Penny Nickel-Relf, is very upset with her ex-husband's actions; however, she just wants to find her daughter. At the time he vanished, Richard was being investigated for embezzling more than a million dollars from his employer Brown Wholesale Electric Company in Phoenix. He was an industrial controls manager and oversaw production of his electrical designs. He often requested checks from Brown Electric to pay for components. One of the suppliers was an outfit called "Adtech". Joanne worked as his bookkeeper and was thrilled at the apparent success of the business. At the time, she had no reason to doubt him. Because of the success, the Relfs received a great amount of money. The money allowed Richard to make dramatic changes in his lifestyle: he bought new cars and property; he threw large parties for friends; on one occasion, he invited sixty people over, rented horses for them, had them go on a two-hour trail ride, and had them return to a steak dinner with a band and free alcohol. Some of his friends and co-workers began to wonder where all the money was coming from. For six years, the money kept rolling in for Richard. Then, on the morning of May 20, 1992, Brown Electric's office manager Kathy Robrecht became suspicious; Richard had come with the four bill of the month from Adtech. She suggested that they set up an account for the company so that they could bill Brown Electric directly. Richard, however, noted that they were a small "Mom and Pop" company that wouldn't be able wait thirty to sixty days for the money. When Kathy looked at the invoices from Adtech, she noticed that there was only a name and a P.O. Box for the company. There was no street address or phone number for it. She then pulled up some checks that were made to Adtech. She noticed that there was no endorsement or official stamp that a business would normally use. Instead, there was a handwritten "For Deposit Only" and an account number. She called a friend at the bank and asked whose name was on the account. She was shocked to discover that the names on the account were Richard and Joanne Relf. Kathy realized that Richard had made off with a large amount of money for which they received no material in return. Assistant manager Larry Mouser confronted Richard that same afternoon. He asked Richard what he knew about Adtech. He then asked about their location and owners. Ricahrd said that he never met them. Larry then said: "the owners are Richard and Joanne Relf". At that point, he fired Richard. Joanne was shocked by the allegations against him. However, he remained free as the police began their investigation. Investigators examined the company books. They determined that through the Adtech scam, Richard stole about half a million dollars. Also, it was discovered that he had started a second fake company and stolen more money through that company. In total, he had stolen more than $817,000. As the police prepared an indictment against Richard, he planned his disappearance. Approximately four months after he was fired, he made purchases and took out cash advantages totaling $25,000 on credit cards he shared with Joanne. The next day, on September 9, he and Heather vanished. One month later, he was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of fraud and two counts of theft. In 1993, Joanne was granted a divorce and was exonerated of all charges. In 1994, Penny received full custody of Heather. It is believed that Heather and Richard are living in Canada under new identities. However, they have still not been found. Extra Notes: This case first aired on the October 27, 1995 episode. His name is sometimes erroneously spelled "Rouf". Results: Captured. In September 1998, Heather saw herself on the Unsolved Mysteries website and contacted her minister who notified the police. She was later reunited with Penny. Richard was arrested, tried and convicted of fraud and theft. He was sentenced to ten years in prison. He was released on parole in 2003. 'Links: ' * Richard Relf on Unsolved Archive * While her mom worries, teenager lives secret life * Mother yearns for daughter to return home * Valley's missing teenager case to be featured on 'Mysteries' * Mother presses on in four-year search for her daughter * Richard Relf Inmate Information ---- Category:Arizona Category: 1992 Category:Captured Category: Fraud Category: Embezzlement Category: Abduction Category:Theft